from the Epoch Times
Australians have lost hundreds of bank branches and ATMs over the past year, sparking concerns from campaigners that the transition to a cashless society will ultimately disadvantage consumers.
New statistics from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) showed 424 physical bank branches and 718 automatic teller machines (ATMs) had been shut.
The APRA statistics, released Oct. 18, outlined a decline in bank branches and ATMs within the 2023 financial year with a 10.6 percent reduction in bank branches, and an 11.2 percent cut in ATMs to the end of June 2017,” APRA said.
APRA is the national data collection agency for the financial sector and collects data from banks, credit unions, and building societies for annual publication.
Cash Welcome campaign spokesperson Jason Bryce said there was no incentive for big financial institutions to be part of the cash system.
“This is a really big problem that the politicians really have to face up to because, at the heart of the cash distribution system, the key institution is not making money and doesn’t really want to be part of it,” he told 4BC radio.
Mr. Bryce raised concerns that the population was being herded away from cash and onto digital cashless systems.
“This whole cashless society thing is not something that is consumer-led. They are trying to herd us away from what is essentially a publicly owned piece of economic infrastructure—the cash that is issued by the Reserve Bank of Australia—and onto digital cashless payment systems which all charge fees and collect our information.”
Mr. Bryce started up Cash Welcome in response to the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown when his local supermarket and bank went cashless.
“It’s been amazing the response, there is a great deal of concern that cash should be available when we need it. We all love to tap or to use our card, it’s convenient, but everybody at some time needs cash.”
Cold hard stats reveal fast disappearing ATMs, branches
The APRA statistics reveal branches and ATM numbers have been slashed every year.
In 2017, there were 5,694 physical bank branches across the country. This was reduced to 4,012 in June 2022, and finally to 3,588 in 2023—a 37 percent reduction in six years.
They already got control of the earth, and its call a cell phone. Everyone has one and is now scanned surveyed so they can stay one step ahead with the social engineering they manipulate. Problem reaction solution.